11 Things with Andrea #6
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I can’t believe how long it has been since I’ve written one of these update posts! I’ve noticed that due to Quarantine, I have a weird relationship with time. It’s moving very slowly, yet I still am very confused how it’s not April still. If you are new around here, these are random update posts that help me share bits and pieces of my life and what I’m up to. They seem to be a favorite around here so I hope you’ll enjoy.
I still haven’t gotten used to the fact that I am debt free, even though it has been almost 9 months. Some of that is probably due to the fact that I’m still being mindful with the pandemic of how I’m spending my money, and also that I am not a super spendy person. I look at my budget sometimes and I’m like “I can’t believe I used to have to give away this huge chunk of my income to student loans every month!” It’s pretty great to get to use ALL of my income on my savings goals.
I thought I had found planner peace when I discovered the Passion Planner. I do absolutely LOVE the layout and think it’s great for keeping track of my crazy inconsistent schedule. However, I felt like I was overwhelmed with keeping both my home/life tasks and my work tasks in the same space. I had been wanting to try a Happy Planner, so I purchased one and it’s changed my life. I LOVE the disc bound system. I bought the punch and ended up doing some surgery on my Passion Planner to add it into the Happy Planner. I plan on doing a dedicated post to this once I have used it for a little longer and know exactly what I’m doing with it.
Mikey and I have been watching the Sopranos for the past couple of months and omg. How was I sleeping on this show, especially being ITALIAN?! Mikey loves a good TV series and over the course of our dating history, has made sure that we watch some of his favorites. Now I understand why he bought me that Sopranos cookbook for my birthday a few years ago. You do get very hungry watching it. haha We’ve had many pasta and Soprano’s nights. We are in the last season and I am going to be so sad when it’s over.
I’ve recently started a new morning routine and I am obsessed with it. First, I start the coffee brewing and tidy up the living room. It’s usually a little disorganized from the night before and I love getting it super tidy and clean feeling for the day. Then, I light some incense and turn on some meditation music and plan my day while I’m drinking my coffee. Sometimes I read a little too, depending on what I have doing on that morning. There is something about the calm music and incense with my coffee that gets my day started off on such a positive note.
Hamilton, Hamilton, Hamilton. I probably don’t need to elaborate but Hamilton Mania has reached our household and we can’t get enough. We listen to it all the time, we sing bits of the songs to each other and I am not ashamed. We love it. If you haven’t watched it yet, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! It’s amazing.
I’m still obsessed with the Essie Expressie Nail Polish line. I have many colors now and they are the only thing I’ve used to paint my nails since quarantine began. My current favorite shade that I keep reapplying every time I am painting my nails, is the shade Saffr-on the Move. It dries super quickly and lasts SO long which is huge for me!
I feel like I can’t write one of these 11 Things posts without sharing a cookbook update! It’s coming along. I am still recipe testing which simply takes a long time! I am hoping to be done with the book this winter,, with hopefully a Spring launch so wish me luck!
In case you missed the update on Instagram, I am back to nannying part time. Pre-COVID, my plan was to be done nannying this past June and jump 100% into everything I do for Andrea Fontana Beauty. However, with COVID and virtual school, both of the families I used to nanny for (and adore) asked if I could help out for a little bit during this weird pandemic transition time. I love my boys so much, so it is good to be back, but it’s weird having an actual schedule to stick to for work after having nothing for so long.
I finally bought my Schwinn iC4 bike and started using the Peleton app with it and I’m obsessed. I am going to be doing a full blog post dedicated to the bike soon, because I love it and I think it’s a much better option than paying over $2,000 for the Peleton bike.
My mental health is tricky these days, which probably comes as no surprise. The COVID pandemic has been really hard for everyone in so many ways and I find that while I have mostly good days, sometimes the days are REALLY difficult. It’s ok to not be ok. 2020 has been a very weird and difficult year so know you are not alone if you have been struggling. I’m always here to chat if you need it.
I know that I probably sound like a broken record, but I can’t stress how important it is to support your local small businesses always, but especially during this weird time. Some of the things I’ve done is buy gift cards (I even gave one to my best friend and asked her to go shopping for me with it which was so fun!), started my holiday shopping, shared about them on social media, recommended them to friends, etc. Intentional shopping is key in supporting our communities during this difficult time. Shop less, but from more meaningful sources.
How have you been? How’s your mental health? What have you been up to? Leave me a comment down below and let me know!
Sending you love,
Andrea
